Phillip Lerner, «Redefining h)lth. An Assurance of Israel’s Return
to the Land in Jethro’s Covenant», Vol. 87 (2006) 402-411

Though it is recognized that Exod 18,1-12 contains treaty making elements, there
seems to be very little evidence of the nature of this treaty. The term h)lth is reexamined
and redefined as “the suffering that is encountered due to the helpless
nature of being forsaken”. The phrase wnt)cm r#) h)lth lk, found in Exod 18,8,
is demonstrated to be a technical phrase with certain common characteristics that
is used as surety that Israel will be fully restored to their land. In addition to
providing more details of Jethro’s covenant, this phrase, in combination with
several other terms in Exod 18,1-12, narrows the possibilities regarding the
covenant’s nature and function.

Redefining halth 405
Israelâ€™s â€œbreach of conduct will at last bring into operation the curses of the
covenantâ€ (17). It seems that the LXX has grasped this point in its translation,
kavi oujkevti ajnhvsw aujtouv", â€œI will no longer spare themâ€. Godâ€™s people had
â€œrejected him for the last time; the time of judgment had comeâ€ (18).
The term also seems to imply a sort of break in covenantal providence.
Isa 16,12 describes a scene in which Moab has lost the ability to call on the
gods for protection and sustenance.
And when Moab presents himself,
when he wearies himself upon the high place,
When he comes to his sanctuary to pray, he will not prevail.
By the use of â€œwhenâ€ at the beginning of each line, translations such as this
one make the actions of presentation, wearying, and coming to the sanctuary of
the same level, a list of three equal actions, so to speak (19). However, if the
difficulties in understanding the text are set aside, it would appear by the use of
hyhw at the beginning of the verse that the text up to the atnach is meant to
contrast the second half of the verse. This is supported by the use of ykw before
the first two actions but not before the third. This lays the groundwork for
understanding the halves as repetitive clauses. â€œAnd it shall come to pass, that
when Moab appears at the high place and is forsaken [helpless] there, that he
shall come to pray at his sanctuary, but to no availâ€. Moab is given up on by
their gods, this is why they â€œare unableâ€ (lkwy al) in their prayers.
Such a situation also lends the meaning of â€œhelplessâ€ (or abandoned),
without protection and provision, tossed about by danger and chaos. The
Babylonian magicians are told in Isa 47,13, â€œYou are wearied with your many
consultations; let those who study the heavens stand up and save you, those
who gaze at the stars, and at each new moon predict what shall befall youâ€.
The magicians are unable to predict anything and avoid the destruction (20).
Their astrology is useless to them. It is, therefore, the constant referral to the
astrologers that is wearing them out, specifically because it is not working and
therefore requires repetition.
It appears that the term hal parallels the weariness of v. 12, â€œfrom which
you toiled from your youthâ€ (21). It is best, though, to first look at the
(17) J.A. THOMPSON, The Book of Jeremiah (Grand Rapids 1980) 291.
(18) P.C. CRAIGIE â€“ P.H. KELLEY â€“ J.F. DRINKARD, Jeremiah 1â€“25 (WBC 26; Dallas
1991) 205.
(19) This point is, of course, evident to the interpreters as is evinced here by the fact
that the description of traveling to the sanctuary is set off as a separate line. However, the
flow of action is still missed in such a technique, losing the â€œrising intensity of meaningâ€.
J.D.W. WATTS, Isaiah 1â€“33 (WBC 24; Waco 1985) 228, n. 12.a. This is assuming that
ahrnw, whose presence Watts assumes is explained by this crescendo in meaning, isnâ€™t a
dittography.
(20) The term seems to be a singular noun with a plural suffix which has led to
emending it either as â€œyour counselorsâ€ or â€œyour counselsâ€. However, it is possible to
understand this term to include both meanings, i.e. â€œcounselâ€, cf. J.N. OSWALT, The Book
of Isaiah Chapters 40â€“66 (Grand Rapids 1998) 251, n. 45. Also see C. FRANKE, Isaiah 46,
47, and 48. A New Literary-Critical Reading (Winona Lake 1994) 140. â€œThe reference is
to the advice or wisdom (and by extension, to those who dispense such wisdom) that
Babylon has receivedâ€¦from the astrologersâ€.
(21) Ibid.